The Beginning of Something Different
by SilverWolf7
Summary: Artemis Entreri, after finally deciding to go home after his stay in Menzoberranzan finds nothing but a wrecked city and a little girl.  Wanting something different for his life, he quite reluctantly decides to take the young lass with him.  But to where?
1. Chapter One

The Beginning of Something Different

He had spent the last few years travelling aimlessly about Faerun and had finally decided it was about time to go back home. The journey itself from the Silver Marches to the desert of where he called home was at least a few weeks, but more likely months. He had lost track of the time and days that had passed.

He was walking there, thinking of what a lie he had been living most of his life. That Drizzt Do'Urden had been correct in saying his life was empty...well, it took his staying in a drow city to understand that it had been no lie.

He was determined to change that but he had no idea how? Was he supposed to just forget the past 30 years? Was he supposed to scrub out what he was, what he had done? He wondered suddenly if his father ever had regrets at what he had done, but shook his head. No, there was no going back for that bastard.

Could he possibly be able to take his life and make it something better? He wasn't sure, all he knew was he would not become anything like his father. But if he didn't find a way...would that make him no better?

With a growl, he pushed any thoughts of his father out of his head and just thought of ways to make his life mean something...he could think of nothing.

He was close to home now, the camel he was now on plodding its way the last few miles. What he saw when the city he had lived in most of his life came into view, he thought was his imagination. Most buildings were nothing but rubble, wood had been burnt to cinders and there was a much thicker curtain of flies than normal buzzing about the demolished city.

As he and his humped mount travelled closer he noted the smell of burnt skin and not so freshly dead bodies. This had happened only a few short weeks ago, perhaps a few days and with the heat of the desert decomposition was happening faster. All he knew was that the sight with the added smell was making him feel nauseous.

Slowly, he climbed down from the camel's back and went closer to the wreckage. Closely looking for signs of what had happened, he found what he was looking for. Just to the east of the wrecked city was a huge red dragon, dead.

Wherever he turned, there was something out to make his life more miserable than it already was...and now it was dragons. A creature he was determined to hate for the rest of his life.

Slowly he looked over the dead dragon and noted that it had only been dead a few short days. So, it was the sun making the bodies rot faster.

Turning about, he made his way to the beginning of the rubble and the first thing he noted was a blackened hand poking out of the stone that had used to be a house. The dragon must have been firing its breath weapon down upon the wooden hovels and burning them to the ground before swinging its heavy, yet whip-like tail at the stone houses of the more fortunate.

There was not one building left standing. A thought come to him then...what if someone was stilll alive, buried under rock? With no reason as to why, he began to move some of the rubble away to uncover the rest of the body the hand belonged to.

It was only burnt in places, mainly on that hand. It had also once been a boy about twelve years old. With a loud sigh, he pulled the poor lad out from his prison of rock. A sound reached his ears then that he had not expected. Sniffling was coming from further under the wreckage. Glancing under, he noticed that a slab of rock had fallen and had been stopped by two columns that might have once held up a heavy door. Under the slab was a tight space free of debris. Clinging as if to life to a corpse of an adult male was a girl around six years old. And she was alive.

Looking about, he knew there was no way of picking up the heavy piece of rock, but if he could clear some space and fiind a way to lever the heavy slab up enough for the girl to crawl out, he may yet keep her alive.

He got started immediately, clearing away a lot of the smaller rubble pieces strewn in front of the cubby the girl was hidden in. After that was done, he looked about and began picking about the debris looking for something to lever the slab up a bit...or away completely.

He soon found a piece of metal, light enough to carry, but strong enough - or so he hoped - to hold up the weight.

Going back to the girl, he got the metal in the right spot and heaved. The stone moved slightly away from the girl. It was enough of a gap for him to reach down and grab her and pull her free.

"Let go and come with me." He said, not in his usual tone. He didn't want to scare the child away after all. The girl shook her head and clung tighter to the body that must have been her father.

"Da won't wake up." She said as he inched in to the cramped place.

Realising this was the first time the young girl probably had witnessed death, it was understandable that she would think such a thing, but he knew that could not last forever.

"He is not going to wake up ever again. Come, give me your hand and I will pull you out." He reached out his hand but still the girl was stubborn enough to shake her head.

"Take Da out first."

With a huge sigh, he relented to that. Perhaps he could at least give the poor man a burial for his daughters sake. Being dead for at least a day, the body was rank, but if it would get the child moving...he was too big to crawl in, so he had to get the girl to pass him a hand.

Once the man was outside next to the boy he had dug up, he went back to get the girl. She was quiet now and held her hands out for him to grab. He slowly grabbed the small hands and carefully pulled the girl free.

Looking about and blinking at the destruction about her, the next sentence would have been funny if the situation wasn't so damn serious. "Where did the houses all go?"

"Gone. Turned to small bits of rock, just as your house did. Where is your mother?" Seeing as both bodies were found under the same roof, he assumed that the boy was an older brother.

"She went away...never came back." The girl clung to him then, a little annoying, but if it made her feel better..."She left with another man...da had known from the temple closest to home."

He almost growled in distaste. This young girl had witnessed her mother leaving her and her family for another man. The thought of any parent abandoning their child made his blood boil. There were poorer men and women that were better mannered!

"Well, we can keep each other company...perhaps see if anyone else is...able to hear us."

The girl sniffed and nodded. She then went to the house next to her demolished one and started to poke through the rubble. Entreri went the the house on the other side.

All he found was another five bodies.

A scream suddenly rent the air alerting Entreri to any danger that might be about. Fortunately, there was no other dragons about. Instead he found the girl looking down into a small space she had just made. She screamed again, a noise that grated on Entreri's nerves and ears.

With little patience, he stormed over to the girl and looked at where she was pointing, frozen in horror. It was the body of another little girl, about the same age as she was, but definitely dead. Part of a wall had collapsed on top of her and had damaged the small childs face. Entreri guessed that the only reason his young charge was so upset was because they had been friends.

"Atala!" The girl said, before promptly getting sick. She then walked off to what had been her family, but was now so much meat.

Witth a shuddering moan, the girl began to loudly sob over the dead figure of her father. Artemis didn't know what to do. He was not good at offering comfort to those who needed it. He had never been offered any when he had needed it as a child, why should he help this girl, who obviously cared a lot for her father?

Remembering the feeling of utter helplessness one can feel when ones world is completely turned around, he knew instinctively that he had to do something. But what? With a sigh he slowly turned the girl about and held her close to himself.

She clung to him as if hungry for the touch, and perhaps she was. It made him feel nothing but uncomfortable as she sobbed heavily into his shirt, her small arms wrapped about his waist.

Uncomfortable thought it might have been, he let the child stay in the clutching position she was in. If it made her stop crying, he would have danced a jig for her...though he would never be caught dead doing so for anyone else.

He couldn't bear the noise of the small girl's grief.

After a while the noise stopped, but the girl didn't let go. With a sigh of frustration, Entreri lowered himself to the rubble on the ground and looked at his small problem.

"What is your name, girl?" he asked, the question coming out harsher than he meant it to.

At first she didn't answer, but when she did, she said he name quietly. Her parents taught her well. To give someone your name gave them control over you. "Jasmal," she whispered though, and he could tell she wasn't lying.

"Hello Jasmal, my name is Artemis."

He gave her his first name as undoubtedly everyone in Calimshan had heard his last. It felt strange to give someone his given name. It was something he hadn't done since he became a member of the Bassadoni guild.

In some ways, it evven felt good.

A/N - Well, here is the start of a new Forgotten Realms story by me. This one is, as you have undoubtedly guessed by now, about everyone's favourite assassin, Artemis Entreri. I hope you all enjoy.

Sorry about not getting 'Light in the Darkness' updated any time soon, but I have one chronic case of writer's block for it, which is bad, especially since I know what I want to happen. I guess finding out I am slowly going blind myself did it for me...ever since, I haven't written any of that story. Ah well, it will be finished...eventually.

Ariel D, here it is, and thanks for the list of names for gals in Calimshan. I would still be thinking of a name for the poor girl without it.


	2. Chapter Two

The Beginning of Something Different

Chapter Two

It was a long day of digging and finding the dead for Entreri, but it kept him busy. Jasmal, in such a state as she was, no longer helped but watched, silent tears streaming unchecked down her face. He didn't feel anything, but a need to finish what he was doing, and in such a city as Calimport...it would take quite a while.

In the time since he had found Jasmal to the time night began to fall and the chill of the desert's dark hours began to descend, he had a growing pile of dead and no shelter big enough to fit in that would keep them warm from the coming cold.

Shivering slightly, he looked towards the girl, only to see her shaking in her day clothing. They would need warm clothing and good shelter, perhaps a still-standing fireplace to warm up.

Walking back over to Jasmal, he beckoned her to follow him and turned around, walking in the opposite direction. While she was most probably unsure at the thought of where he was leading her to, he could tell the young lass was following him as her footsteps were quite loud and echoed in the ruins of the city.

They walked for a while, the sun fully disappearing and the cold beginning to seep in. For the most part, Entreri could ignore it, for he had lived with it for quite a while, but the girl was young yet and would still dress warmly and snugly during the nights.

"C-cold," Jasmal said with a stutter behind him. Turning slightly to look at the girl, he noted that she was shivering continuously now and was hugging her arms around her body trying to get warm.

With a slight sigh, he waited until she was standing in front of him, before picking her up off the ground and held her close. Perhaps she would survive the night, which would undoubtedly get colder, if he shared his body heat with her.

He wasn't thrilled with the thought, as he didn't much like being touched, and it had been so long since he had been held in a hug that he didn't even know if he was doing it correctly. Still, the girl seemed comfortable enough, laying her head against his shoulder and keeping it there.

It was decidedly uncomfortable for him, but he didn't feel much like being the only one alive in the destroyed Calimport, he had spent the past few years since escaping the Underdark alone and he was wanting company. A feeling that was foreign to him, much like the way he was being with Jasmal in his arms.

The small breaths of the girl against his neck held a little comfort and he knew he had to find shelter soon. While he would survive a night in the ruins the lass didn't stand a chance. She barely had any muscle or fat to keep her warm.

The streets were eerily quiet and, while knowing that it was likely that he and the girl were the only human survivors, he still expected to hear the bark of an unruly dog, or the sound of people inside their houses getting on with their lives. Lives that had been taken away a whole lot slower than he would normally kill someone.

He would also never kill anyone who was undoubtedly innocent of the crimes he had been trialed for. Unless, of course, they truly annoyed him. Yet the thought of all this death made him shiver, and not from the cold.

The small arms of Jasmal wrapped themselves tighter about him as she must have thought he was cold. The arms were getting dangerously close to strangling him now. With as much patience as he could muster under the circumstances, he loosened the grip to something he was more comfortable with. Her arms now wrapped under his arms and away from his neck. Jasmal didn't seem to mind.

About to give up on the search for shelter big enough in the rubble for the both of them, he turned down one alley that led to the richer homes.

"Look!" cried out Jasmal, yelling the word in his ear. He almost dropped her in his surprise over hearing the sudden voice, before he noted the excitement under the cold stuttering.

Turning about, he instantly saw what the girl was excited about. Standing proudly was the arched dome that had once topped a church. Quickly walking towards it, he recognised the symbol that would be on four separate parts of the dome. It was one of the small churches to Sune. One of the open ones that usually made Entreri's lip curl in disgust. It wasn't so much beautiful like most temples to the Goddess, but rather...erotic.

Today though, he could forget the goings on that usually happened under that dome, as it was the perfect spot for shelter...if they could get under it now the pillars that usually held it up seemed to have been swept away by a tail swipe from the now deceased dragon.

Reaching the building, he walked around its perimeter, pleased to find that there was one side with an opening big enough for him to walk through while holding the girl. To his ultimate surprise, there were people inside. Two halflings and two humans were huddled about a fire, off in one corner, as if keeping watch over the opening was an elf.

All turned to look at him as he entered, all raising to their feet but whether out of welcome or threat, he couldn't tell in the bad lighting.

"Greetings, and what pray tell are your names?" he asked, trying to diffuse the sudden tension under the dome.

The two halflings sat back down, before answering him. "Im Tori," said the female, the male then smiled and said, "My name is Jori."

Entreri nodded to them both, glad somewhat that he didn't have to resort to violence just yet.

The elf shifted position slightly, and Entreri noted the elf's body was that of a female. He hadn't noticed until that second, not that it truly mattered what sex the elf was. She stayed quiet, instead she glanced at the two humans sitting by the fire, waiting for them to continue before answering herself.

"Amilia," the human female answered, leaning against the man.

The male then nodded his head slightly, before draping an arm around Amilia. "Lindan," he stated, before turning to the woman beside him and initiating a kiss that would make Sune proud.

Entreri ignored that to the best of his ability and looked towards the elf. "Individual," she said, stepping away from the wall and towards the fire.

A smirk on his face, he inclined his head. "Interesting name. Somehow I doubt it is your true one, but if you want to be that different, then by all means..."

"And what is your name, stranger!" she asked, crossing her arms underneath her chest.

With a small bow he stated his name in its entirety, something he had not done since he had been a boy. "My name? Artemis Entreri. Perhaps you have heard of me?"

Amazingly enough, only the two halflings had heard of him. The two humans it seemed weren't from here and had just been visiting the city for a holiday of sorts...and the elf was new to the city herself.

Tori sqeaked out loud, while Jori's eyes widened at his admission. "B-but...you left! Its been years since you were last here..." stated Jori, before his eyes narrowed, "How do we know you truly are..."

The rest of his sentence was cut off as Entreri, careful of the child still in his arms, drew his bejeweled dagger. The halfling seemed to believe him after that, slowly backing up to hide behind the other of his kind.

"As to where I have been, perhaps the other blade I carry will give you a clue, it is dark enough in here and night has fallen..." with that said, he drew the long sword and displayed it to all at the fire. It was, naturally, a finely crafted blade made of adamantium, something the elf recognised.

"Where did you get such a fine blade?" she asked him, staring at the fine weapon with open awe in her eyes.

"I took it off the dead drow it used to belong to. Of course, we had stopped being followed after a nasty incident involving destroying a high chapel to Lloth while a ceremony was being held and were running for our lives...but I managed to kill some of the bastards and took the best sword left to me."

It had been the last time he had ever worked with Drizzt Do'Urden, and hopefully the last time. If he was truly lucky, perhaps no one would ever mention that name in his prescence again! While his obsession with killing that damnable drow was now gone, he still hated the ranger. He doubted that would ever change.

"Drow?" came the small voice of Jasmal, muffled by her saying that word against his shoulder. "What is a drow?"

The other five laughed. Glaring at them, he took the girl and stepped back from the others and back outside. The night was now fully upon them and the wind that burnt during the day was now bitingly cold. He turned the girl about so she was looking at his face.

"Drow are very bad, and I don't want you to ever go near one. They are called dark elves also. Skin as dark as pitch, and hair as white as the Northern snows."

Jasmal clung to him then, and he couldn't for the life of him remove her hands from his person. She seemed to be as strong as a giant. He noted a bit late that it must be because she was scared.

Sighing at the thought of another clinging to him, he walked back under the dome and sat beside the human female, close to the fire, hoping that the shivering Jasmal was doing would eventually stop.

"Is she your daughter?" Amilia asked, looking at the small girl in his arms. "Hey sweety."

"She is not. I found her under a pile of rubble," he answered, hoping no more questions were asked. He might as well have been wishing for the demolished city to fix itself and all the dead buried be brought back to life.

"What's your name, honey," the woman asked, this time directing her question to the child. She just buried herself further into his arms.

"Jasmal," he answered, his voice a low growl as the irritation he was feeling began to seep through into his expression.

"Noo need to get angry now, gorgeous. I merely just wanted her name."

He looked at her and if looks could kill, a dozen daggers would have impaled the annoying woman. "I do not think you will live much longer if you keep calling me gorgeous," he stated, looking her in the eyes.

She seemed to wilt under his glare, before lowering her gaze to her lap, wrapping the arms of Lindan around her as if to keep herself warm.

"There has been enough death in this place. It is beginning to reek strongly of it," Individual stated, moving closer to the fire, her clothing shown to him now as a dark blue wizards robe. He didn't like wizards.

He couldn't help but agree with her. Dropping the subject, he turned his head the other way and spotted the two halflings watching him.

Shaking his head, he stood back up, shifting Jasmal into a more comfortable position in his arms, before walking over to where some discarded throw pillows were, making a bed out of them and laying down.

The girl didn't let go the entire time. What confused him more than anything though and made him even more uncomfortable, was the fact that he had made noo move to even try and dislodge the lass.

He fell into his customary light sleep for the first time in a very long while content.

A/N - Yes, another chapter of this story is up! Thanks go to all those who reviewed the first. And no, I have never watched an episode of InuYasha, so don't really know if I am running along those lines.

Hope you don't mind so many new characters being introduced...and the name Individual is strange, I am aware of that.


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